I'm still doing bento-style lunches for D and Miss A!!!
Since the beginning of the year, I've made over 80 bento lunches/breakfasts. I've taken pictures of most of them and have been posting them on facebook as often as I can. (Which means not very often because how much time do you think I have anyway!)
(BTW - sorry about the excessive use of asides and/or remarks in parantheses lately. I know it's annoying. And perhaps I shouldn't have indicated an apology in the very fashion that which I'm apologizing for. Anyway.)
I started posting the bento pictures here and then it just started being a bit excessive since I wasn't posting anything else for a while and it was seemingly all bentos, all the time. Well, allow me to make up for lost times and feast your eyes on some of my faves since I started making them at the beginning of the year...
As I said before, I've done well over 80 since the start of the year and this is literally only a small sampling but thought you'd enjoy being caught on them just the same. The good news of it all is that I'm getting so much faster at making them and I've also got some handy-dandy special tools to make things a little more efficient and I can make a decent bento box in a solid five minutes if need be!!! Also, Miss A remains a huge fan of them on the whole and her omnivore diet is continually expanding with the help of the bentos!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
The 'Brella
Do you have any idea how long Miss A has been talking about wanting an umbrella - or in Miss A terms - a "Brella"?
Answer: WEEKS!!! And maybe even so many weeks that it's actually MONTHS.
Seriously. I don't even know how she got so obsessed with umbrellas but it happened and my big plan was to get her one of Easter. Good plan right? WRONG. Especially when you happen to be walking around Target to "kill time" while you get prescription antibiotics filled and you come across a whole display of 'Brellas.
You would have thought that the Lord himself came down from heaven and opened up the pearly gates and there stood the largest piles of 'Brellas EVER. Miss A was truly beside herself.
Sadly, she did not pick a Hello Kitty one. *Seriously. Imagine me making an honest-to-goodness sad face about this!* (I'm thinking it's because the Hello Kitty one was red and not pink, of course.) She also opted out of the pink Disney Princess one - because I'm guessing that the 3-D sculpted handle of Cinderella was a little scary to her (it was to me!) - and went straight for the lavender Tinkerbell and fairy friends one...
And, OF COURSE, we had to "test drive" it today on a walk (repeatedly) around and about our circular driveway despite the fact that the weather was very sunny and a bit chilly out...
Answer: WEEKS!!! And maybe even so many weeks that it's actually MONTHS.
Seriously. I don't even know how she got so obsessed with umbrellas but it happened and my big plan was to get her one of Easter. Good plan right? WRONG. Especially when you happen to be walking around Target to "kill time" while you get prescription antibiotics filled and you come across a whole display of 'Brellas.
You would have thought that the Lord himself came down from heaven and opened up the pearly gates and there stood the largest piles of 'Brellas EVER. Miss A was truly beside herself.
Sadly, she did not pick a Hello Kitty one. *Seriously. Imagine me making an honest-to-goodness sad face about this!* (I'm thinking it's because the Hello Kitty one was red and not pink, of course.) She also opted out of the pink Disney Princess one - because I'm guessing that the 3-D sculpted handle of Cinderella was a little scary to her (it was to me!) - and went straight for the lavender Tinkerbell and fairy friends one...
And, OF COURSE, we had to "test drive" it today on a walk (repeatedly) around and about our circular driveway despite the fact that the weather was very sunny and a bit chilly out...
I felt a little bit like a "chump" for caving and getting/giving her the 'Brella early but everyone else has said to me that such a thing was hardly a moment of weakness when it yielded so very much joy for Miss A. It was a sick day today for her afterall and she DID have to see the doctor (one more time in a string of many weeks at that!) so if a 'Brella is what helped her to feel a little bit better? Well, it might as well have been "just what the doctor ordered."
Still GIRLY. Still here.
Just in case you were wondering...
It's Monday and Miss A is STILL just as girly as she has ever tried to be.
Also, she's really started doing some funny things that I should definitely be recording in some way, shape, form for the sake of posterity.
Earlier she was in her play kitchen just playing away and I noticed that she (without being TOO graphic) definitely needed to use the potty. Here was our exchange...
Anyway, like I said before. Perhaps I should start recording all of these very amusing things in some kind of a book or something. :)
It's Monday and Miss A is STILL just as girly as she has ever tried to be.
Also, she's really started doing some funny things that I should definitely be recording in some way, shape, form for the sake of posterity.
Earlier she was in her play kitchen just playing away and I noticed that she (without being TOO graphic) definitely needed to use the potty. Here was our exchange...
Me: *in a very casual and nonchalant tone* Miss A, you wanna go and sit on the potty for a little bit?And because I'm not easily discouraged or deterred by such an exchange (and also because I'm getting kind of over dealing with "Muddy pants"-Miss A, I revisited the conversation with about the same reaction/response from her. Call me silly but it all kind of amuses me even though such a response from her borders what I believe is acceptable/respectful (overall) but she's at a weird stage right now and I'm willing to dismiss it if only because she had to go to the doctor's AGAIN today. (So if you're counting? That means we've been going just about once a week for two months now. Today it was a pretty severe sinus infection. *sigh*)
Miss A: NO, MAMA. DON'T LOOK OVER HERE. GO OVER THERE!! DON'T BE OVER HERE. GO OVER THERE RIGHT NOW!!! *with a gesture suggesting an area that was behind me some place and much farther away from here*
Anyway, like I said before. Perhaps I should start recording all of these very amusing things in some kind of a book or something. :)
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Genetic predispositions
As Asian girls, Miss A and I are card-carrying Hello Kitty fans. I said this a couple of weeks ago in church when someone commented on how much Hello Kitty stuff Miss A was donning at the moment and people laughed at me but... well.... it's so true! For as long as I can remember and for as many other Asian gals as I've known/been friends with, I can attest to the fact that the love for Hello Kitty is kind of a genetic predisposition. And I'm delighted to report that Miss A is happily carrying on the tradition.
I was in Dallas last weekend for a myriad of reasons and one of my good buddies there took me to an AMAZING H-Mart with a "Korea town"-type plaza that was like Hello Kitty and Pororo (another popular animated Korean character) heaven! (My friend is also an Asian gal who has a daughter and they both enjoy Hello Kitty as much as Miss A and me.)
Anyway, I have been looking for MONTHS for some Ugg-style boots for Miss A and lo and behold I found them on my trip!! Miss A is nuts over the pink AND the Hello Kitty design and I might be even more excited than she is. Wouldn't you know that I had to find these just when we are on the verge of Spring and warm weather around here? *hrumph!* Oh well. The weather people ARE calling for snow showers this weekend so at least we get just a few more couple of days to justify furry boots. These are just TOO. CUTE!
Something else I brought from my Texas travels for Miss A was a really cool and fun "rock collection." It was actually bought in a gift store of a place called Billy Bob's in Ft. Worth and the whole thing was really gimmicky - fill a bag of rocks for two bucks or something - but I saw it and I knew Miss A would really enjoy it and appreciate it. I'm happy to report that she has very much appreciated and enjoyed the whole collection! Well, actually, she really only likes the part of the collection that is pink and/or purple. She is SUCH A GIRLY-GIRL!!! Every time we get them out for her to play with she separates and groups them by color and she always keeps the "pretty" and "girly" ones for herself and relegates all of the rest to whomever is playing with her. For the record? The other ones are actually very pretty even though they aren't pink and/or purple. See the right picture for evidence.
The last thing I brought home from Dallas for Miss A was a Pororo trainer chopstick set. I saw it and I could not resist getting it! I thought I would have to save it for a while because her hands are kind of small and wasn't sure that they could fit her hands but when she saw them she HAD TO have them and I couldn't bring myself to tell her she had to wait. It's a good thing I was so easily coerced to give them over because Miss A took to them like a duck to water! This morning she ate her snack of oyster crackers and cheese stars with them and she did such a good job!!! I'm SO proud of her!
My mom/Nana V stopped in to visit with us and have breakfast this morning and she was just as impressed with Miss A's chopstick set and now I think she might be on a mission to find a few more sets for all of the rest of the grandkids! Let's hope she doesn't have to go all the way to Dallas for them the way I had to.
And just because I think these are so cute, here is the case that the chopsticks came in with a matching soup spoon. The interior is an awesome wipeable/easy to clean vinyl!
Here is the reverse side of the carrying pouch. I have no idea what it says though I do think it's really cute.
And here is the Pororo trainer set (it's specifically designed to be for right-handed training) with the pouch. The spoon was in the dishwasher.
This Pororo set comes in two other characters I think and also in PINK and I might have to recruit my Dallas connections to get them for me (for Miss A... well, OK... for me a little bit too) in time for the next few gift giving holidays.
I was in Dallas last weekend for a myriad of reasons and one of my good buddies there took me to an AMAZING H-Mart with a "Korea town"-type plaza that was like Hello Kitty and Pororo (another popular animated Korean character) heaven! (My friend is also an Asian gal who has a daughter and they both enjoy Hello Kitty as much as Miss A and me.)
Anyway, I have been looking for MONTHS for some Ugg-style boots for Miss A and lo and behold I found them on my trip!! Miss A is nuts over the pink AND the Hello Kitty design and I might be even more excited than she is. Wouldn't you know that I had to find these just when we are on the verge of Spring and warm weather around here? *hrumph!* Oh well. The weather people ARE calling for snow showers this weekend so at least we get just a few more couple of days to justify furry boots. These are just TOO. CUTE!
Something else I brought from my Texas travels for Miss A was a really cool and fun "rock collection." It was actually bought in a gift store of a place called Billy Bob's in Ft. Worth and the whole thing was really gimmicky - fill a bag of rocks for two bucks or something - but I saw it and I knew Miss A would really enjoy it and appreciate it. I'm happy to report that she has very much appreciated and enjoyed the whole collection! Well, actually, she really only likes the part of the collection that is pink and/or purple. She is SUCH A GIRLY-GIRL!!! Every time we get them out for her to play with she separates and groups them by color and she always keeps the "pretty" and "girly" ones for herself and relegates all of the rest to whomever is playing with her. For the record? The other ones are actually very pretty even though they aren't pink and/or purple. See the right picture for evidence.
The last thing I brought home from Dallas for Miss A was a Pororo trainer chopstick set. I saw it and I could not resist getting it! I thought I would have to save it for a while because her hands are kind of small and wasn't sure that they could fit her hands but when she saw them she HAD TO have them and I couldn't bring myself to tell her she had to wait. It's a good thing I was so easily coerced to give them over because Miss A took to them like a duck to water! This morning she ate her snack of oyster crackers and cheese stars with them and she did such a good job!!! I'm SO proud of her!
 |
| Check out how pleased with herself she is. I just love this picture of her! |
My mom/Nana V stopped in to visit with us and have breakfast this morning and she was just as impressed with Miss A's chopstick set and now I think she might be on a mission to find a few more sets for all of the rest of the grandkids! Let's hope she doesn't have to go all the way to Dallas for them the way I had to.
And just because I think these are so cute, here is the case that the chopsticks came in with a matching soup spoon. The interior is an awesome wipeable/easy to clean vinyl!
 |
And here is the Pororo trainer set (it's specifically designed to be for right-handed training) with the pouch. The spoon was in the dishwasher.
This Pororo set comes in two other characters I think and also in PINK and I might have to recruit my Dallas connections to get them for me (for Miss A... well, OK... for me a little bit too) in time for the next few gift giving holidays.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Where did our little Miss A go off to?
This morning was a rare occasion. Miss A (who has typically not been much of a morning person) woke up in a reasonably pleasant mood and didn't fuss at all when I got her dressed. Perhaps it was because she got to wear her favorite "rainbow" outfit?
We were just ready to walk out the door and I grabbed my little camera to snap a quick picture because I was struck by how grown up she is these days. Do you know that in a little more than two months she's going to be three whole years old?!! The time is just really getting away from me faster and faster.
Well, whatever the case, she will always ALWAYS be my little baby girl.
We were just ready to walk out the door and I grabbed my little camera to snap a quick picture because I was struck by how grown up she is these days. Do you know that in a little more than two months she's going to be three whole years old?!! The time is just really getting away from me faster and faster.
Well, whatever the case, she will always ALWAYS be my little baby girl.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
I don't want to miss a thing
Right now I should be up, cleaning, organizing, and preparing like a mad woman for this coming week. But no. And why? Because I just can't handle all of that right now.
I have been anticipating this coming week for months now. One of my best friends in the whole world is getting married in Texas next Saturday and I have the incredible honor of being a part of her nuptials. Additionally, I'm going to get to spend time with two very dear friends who are local to the area and though I'm excited about all of it? I mean... really! I AM. (I promise!) Being in Texas means that I won't get to be home and with Miss A and D and also my beloved students at school/work! And it won't be for just one day that I don't get to be home. Nope! It means that I will be gone for almost a full week!!!
A normal person would be rejoicing over all of this because something like this is also known as a vacation to some. Well... I guess I'm just not normal. Perhaps I shouldn't have accidentally just listened to this song from Taylor Swift because it's not helping at all. All of you folks out there who are parents of daughters (especially)? I challenge you to listen to this and pay close attention to the lyrics and not be a bawling and weeping mess by the end of the song...
Truth be told, I'm kind of dreading this coming week and I think my resistance to do what I know needs to be done is an unconscious wish to hopefully slow down the clock so that it doesn't get here so fast. Why? Because I really really really don't want to miss all of the little moments of Miss A's life that are as beautiful as these...
I have been anticipating this coming week for months now. One of my best friends in the whole world is getting married in Texas next Saturday and I have the incredible honor of being a part of her nuptials. Additionally, I'm going to get to spend time with two very dear friends who are local to the area and though I'm excited about all of it? I mean... really! I AM. (I promise!) Being in Texas means that I won't get to be home and with Miss A and D and also my beloved students at school/work! And it won't be for just one day that I don't get to be home. Nope! It means that I will be gone for almost a full week!!!
A normal person would be rejoicing over all of this because something like this is also known as a vacation to some. Well... I guess I'm just not normal. Perhaps I shouldn't have accidentally just listened to this song from Taylor Swift because it's not helping at all. All of you folks out there who are parents of daughters (especially)? I challenge you to listen to this and pay close attention to the lyrics and not be a bawling and weeping mess by the end of the song...
This next week I know I have the incredible honor to stand up with my best friend and watch her take her vows with the love of her life. Still, I can't help but think about all of the things I'm going to miss about my everyday life here. And I would list off the litany of things that I will miss but I just started to and it only made me more sad about not being here.
I'm just so thankful for the life that which the Lord has blessed me. I fuss about how it all tires me out and wears me down but the truth is that I cherish every moment I have D and Miss A. It gets better and better every minute of every day and I know it will be here waiting in its own holding pattern until I get back but still? I will long for it until then.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
"Icky belly" strikes again!
*sigh*
Do you know that tomorrow will mark the fourth time we've been to the doctors office in probably a month? This has got to to a record for us.
I will spare you the really gory details and just tell you the very condensed version of what our last 24 hours have been like. Pretty much it's been the following:
Thankfully, a day of serious RnR, a few popsicles, the BRAT diet, and juice and broth had Miss A reasonably back on her little feet enough for her to enjoy putting on her rainboots so she could tromp out to the woodshop with D when he got home from work this evening to give me a break. Miss A only lasted about 20 minutes or so out in the woodshop before she insisted upon coming back in to make sure I was OK (she's good about checking on people like that) and then she pulled up a piece of floor, made herself a comfortable squat and enjoyed an episode of Kai-lan.
Seriously? I just love when I catch her squatting like this. It warms my heart and makes me feel like I'm looking at pictures of myself when I was once her age. The Asian squat is just in her blood. :)
By the way, would you care to see some of the beautiful woodworking D is getting into these days? The things he's turning out really are amazing!
Would you believe he is making these out of firewood? SERIOUSLY. I'm talking, the wood for them is straight-up from the firewood pile that we use in our fireplace!! AMAZING. Honestly and truly... the talent and vision he has been blessed with to be able to do this is AMAZING. We've been praying together about how this all needs to play itself out and we truly believe him realizing this talent is a calling that he is committed to answering and will use to help to share his walk of faith by. The first three crosses pictured above will be auctioned off for a charity auction in about a week or so and the fourth one was made as a gift for someone who has really blessed our lives. And these crosses aren't even half of what he's actually made all together! I've only just started taking pictures of them because we finally got a product photography studio set-up put together to be able to take pictures correctly. In time D will have his own website set up and (probably) Etsy store to be able to sell them a little more directly. We'll announce it when it all comes together. :)
Tomorrow D is staying home with Miss A and taking her to the Dr's first thing in the morning. We're praying that this will be the last trip for a while.
Do you know that tomorrow will mark the fourth time we've been to the doctors office in probably a month? This has got to to a record for us.
I will spare you the really gory details and just tell you the very condensed version of what our last 24 hours have been like. Pretty much it's been the following:
- 3am wake-up "call" courtesy of Miss A
- "Hanging out" with a very restless Miss A for a good chunk of the darkest part of the morning
- "Camping out" on the floor next to Miss A for the remainder of night's sleep that neither of us was getting
- Calling out sick from preschool (for Miss A) and from work (for me) for the day
- Parking ourselves comfortably on the couch and watching Ramona and Beezus On Demand probably four times
It was a rather dreary and rainy day which really did match the mood (and the belly pangs) for Miss A so it was kind of appropriate to be able to cozy up and snuggle with her on the couch instead of going to work and pouring and sculpting cave walls for one of my latest art history lessons with my students...
Thankfully, a day of serious RnR, a few popsicles, the BRAT diet, and juice and broth had Miss A reasonably back on her little feet enough for her to enjoy putting on her rainboots so she could tromp out to the woodshop with D when he got home from work this evening to give me a break. Miss A only lasted about 20 minutes or so out in the woodshop before she insisted upon coming back in to make sure I was OK (she's good about checking on people like that) and then she pulled up a piece of floor, made herself a comfortable squat and enjoyed an episode of Kai-lan.
Seriously? I just love when I catch her squatting like this. It warms my heart and makes me feel like I'm looking at pictures of myself when I was once her age. The Asian squat is just in her blood. :)
By the way, would you care to see some of the beautiful woodworking D is getting into these days? The things he's turning out really are amazing!
Would you believe he is making these out of firewood? SERIOUSLY. I'm talking, the wood for them is straight-up from the firewood pile that we use in our fireplace!! AMAZING. Honestly and truly... the talent and vision he has been blessed with to be able to do this is AMAZING. We've been praying together about how this all needs to play itself out and we truly believe him realizing this talent is a calling that he is committed to answering and will use to help to share his walk of faith by. The first three crosses pictured above will be auctioned off for a charity auction in about a week or so and the fourth one was made as a gift for someone who has really blessed our lives. And these crosses aren't even half of what he's actually made all together! I've only just started taking pictures of them because we finally got a product photography studio set-up put together to be able to take pictures correctly. In time D will have his own website set up and (probably) Etsy store to be able to sell them a little more directly. We'll announce it when it all comes together. :)
Tomorrow D is staying home with Miss A and taking her to the Dr's first thing in the morning. We're praying that this will be the last trip for a while.
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